This article is part of our NFL Waiver Wire series.
Perhaps the most significant injury of the week occurred when Rashee Rice twisted his knee in what appears to be a long-term injury. Teammates Anthony Richardson and Jonathan Taylor are also banged up, though they sounded optimistic for this week. It seems like a light week for the waiver wire compared to the last few, so it might be a good week to save your FAAB or priority pick.
Bye weeks are upon us — Lions, Titans, Eagles and Chargers are off.
This column is geared toward "standard" 12-team leagues and based upon a $100 free-agent budget. Please adjust for your league based on both the number of teams (I'm in a 24-team league, for example) and remaining budget. Players featured are typically lower than 50 percent rostered. Questions on players not mentioned can be asked about in the comments below.
Quarterback
PRIMARY TARGETS
Geno Smith, SEA - Smith has been great this season and a lot has to do with playing with DK Metcalf. While he only has for touchdown passes, Smith has scored 21.6, 21.2, 18.3 and 27.6 fantasy points in the first four games. He has two 300-yard passing games and a rushing touchdown this season and is on pace for more than 64 rushing attempts this season. Smith also faced two top-5 defense against quarterbacks and still produced. His schedule is much easier until Week 13 when he faces the Jets. He's rostered in 45 percent of Yahoo leagues, but if he's available you
Perhaps the most significant injury of the week occurred when Rashee Rice twisted his knee in what appears to be a long-term injury. Teammates Anthony Richardson and Jonathan Taylor are also banged up, though they sounded optimistic for this week. It seems like a light week for the waiver wire compared to the last few, so it might be a good week to save your FAAB or priority pick.
Bye weeks are upon us — Lions, Titans, Eagles and Chargers are off.
This column is geared toward "standard" 12-team leagues and based upon a $100 free-agent budget. Please adjust for your league based on both the number of teams (I'm in a 24-team league, for example) and remaining budget. Players featured are typically lower than 50 percent rostered. Questions on players not mentioned can be asked about in the comments below.
Quarterback
PRIMARY TARGETS
Geno Smith, SEA - Smith has been great this season and a lot has to do with playing with DK Metcalf. While he only has for touchdown passes, Smith has scored 21.6, 21.2, 18.3 and 27.6 fantasy points in the first four games. He has two 300-yard passing games and a rushing touchdown this season and is on pace for more than 64 rushing attempts this season. Smith also faced two top-5 defense against quarterbacks and still produced. His schedule is much easier until Week 13 when he faces the Jets. He's rostered in 45 percent of Yahoo leagues, but if he's available you can almost blindly start him for the rest of the season in most formats. FAAB: $10-$16
Justin Fields, PIT - Fields has gotten progressively better through the first four week of the season, culminating in 37.1 fantasy points. He showed his upside Sunday with two rushing touchdowns and has thrown only one interception this season. Other than a bye Week 9 and the Jets' Week 7 he has a favorable schedule in the other five games in that seven-game stretch. It's probably safe to say we aren't seeing Russell Wilson anytime soon. FAAB: $8-$14
Running Back
SECONDARY TARGETS
Rico Dowdle, DAL - Dowdle barely makes the cut this week as he's rostered in 49 percent of Yahoo leagues. He averages a half yard per carry more than Ezekiel Elliott and profiles as a better pass-catcher. One problem with picking up Dowdle is his next two opponents (Pittsburgh and Detroit) have both been top-5 team against running backs; Dallas then has its bye Week 7. FAAB: $4-$8
Kareem Hunt, KC - I've been asked about Hunt multiple times in the comments section the last few weeks and, more or less, didn't recommend him. His number have been on a steady decline the last three seasons, though a second stint in Kansas City is obviously a better situation than he had in Cleveland. Carson Steele fumbled again and Samaje Perine got the goal-line carry for a touchdown, rounding out the current production Sunday from the backfield. Further clouding the situation is that Clyde Edwards-Helaire should return this week and it's unknown who will lead the running back committee. My guess after Sunday's game is Hunt would be the guy to own, but it's a murky situation at best. Unless you have a deep bench I'd avoid CEH for now (the Chiefs have a Week 6 Bye) but consider adding him after that week if he carves out a role. FAAB: Hunt $4-$8, Edwards-Helaire $1-$2
Tank Bigsby, JAX - Bigsby has been excellent this season from an efficiency standpoint, averaging 8.2 yards per carry on a small sample of 21 carries. He's not a good pass-catcher out of the backfield and the severity of the shoulder injury to Travis Etienne is unknown at this point. It would be wise for the Jaguars to continue to give touches to Bigsby even if Etienne is healthy given his early season success. The schedule is favorable for both running backs as they have games against teams ranked 15th or lower over their next few weeks. FAAB: $2-$4
HAIL MARY
Trey Sermon, IND - Sermon is definitely the backup to Jonathan Taylor and should the latter's ankle injury cause him to miss time, he would easily be a No. 2 running back given his likely volume. At this point, I'd guess Taylor will be OK to play this week but watch for reports from practice. FAAB: $1-$2
Wide Receiver
SECONDARY TARGETS
Tre Tucker, LV - The Davante Adams situation seems like it's heading toward him being dealt before the trade deadline, leaving the No.1 receiver for the Raiders open. Jakobi Meyers along with Tucker should be the biggest beneficiaries of such a deal at wide receiver (Brock Bowers will benefit as well), and I think there's more upside with Tucker. He's seen his role grow the last two games (15 targets, 13 touches), scoring in both games as the Raiders seem to be making an effort to get him the ball. FAAB: $3-$6
Dontayvion Wicks, GB - Christian Watson looks like he'll miss some time with a high ankle sprain, opening an good opportunity for Wicks. While Jordan Love threw 52 times, 13 of those were toward Wicks, who had five catches for 78 yards and two scores in Sunday's loss to Minnesota. Romeo Doubs should also see an uptick in value, though he hasn't had a game quite like Wicks yet. The schedule looks juicy for the Packers as they play teams ranked 21st or lower their next five games. FAAB: Wicks, Doubs $3-$6
Xavier Legette, CAR - Andy Dalton has possibly breathed life into Legette, as the rookie had 10 targets for six catches and a score while rushing twice. Legette has the makeup of a player who could be used in a similar fashion as Deebo Samuel as both a receiver and at times a ball carrier. Regardless of the number of carries, Legette should continues to average about 6-8 targets a week in the passing game, especially with the injury to Adam Thielen. FAAB: $3-$6
Wan'Dale Robinson, NYG - I'd put up a bigger planned bid for Robinson if we knew that Malik Nabers was going to miss time. While he wasn't lucky to get a concussion, the timing was good as Nabers will have extra time to pass the protocol and play this week after facing Dallas on Thursday night. As it is, the Giants have a narrow receiving tree and Robinson has 38 targets in his first three games. New York's defense is below league average, so Daniel Jones should be throwing a lot this season. FAAB: $3-$6
Tight End
SECONDARY TARGETS
Zach Ertz, WAS - The tight end position continues to disappoint as many of the top players drafted have been unproductive. Ertz has benefited from the accuracy of Jayden Daniels and hauled in 15 of his 16 targets for 150 yards. Those numbers rank him ahead of Kyle Pitts and Sam LaPorta and just behind Travis Kelce. FAAB: $3-$6
